Phillip Steward: Actor. Model. Musician

Guest Writer, Justin Gantt sat down for an interview with him to get to know the man behind the screen.

Who is your inspiration, who made you want to become an actor?

Bro…you’re going to laugh when i say this but i don’t have a favorite actor although I do remember a performance by an actor that really made me feel like he embodied the char- acter, Will Smith in “The Pursuit of Happyness.” Watching him go through the ups and downs, hustling with his son, sleeping in train station bathrooms, studying – I felt like he was actually the guy he was portraying.

What do you say to yourself before you begin a performance?

I remind myself to be as natural as possible. You can tell when someone is reading or memorizing words. It doesn’t come across well. People don’t gravitate towards that. I approach it trying to pull out the essence of the scene as creatively as I can while being true to what the director wants from me.

You’re a musician as well…what instrument do you play?

I am an organist believe it or not. I’ve been playing my whole adult life. Shout out to my church home Spotlight Deliverance Temple in Bristol, PA as well as Berean Baptist Church in Philadelphia where I played for many years.

How do you channel the emotion for the characters you play? Can you cry on command?

Thankfully, I haven’t been asked to cry for a scene yet. My strongest emotion so far has been intense anger. I’m a re- served person so it took a lot of digging deep for me to bring it out. One time I played a bouncer so I had to rough up a guy. As soon as I heard ‘Cut,’ I was like…”Are you ok man? “ Of course he laughed as we proceeded to do it for 5 more takes.

Tell us some of the work you’ve done

I’ve been blessed to be a principle in a feature film ‘Imperfection’ as well as a supporting cast member in a few short films, Over the last year I’ve been in commercials for comcast, The Wells Fargo Center, Nokia, Princeton Orthopedics, A&R Services and others. I’ve also done background for tv shows like Power, Law & Order and American Horror Story.

What are your goals in life? Outside of just acting and performing…

I do have fitness goals and outside of acting I am self-employed – I do website and graphic design. I’d love to see it grow. I have a benchmark that I’m reaching for each month. I want to be a good example for my kids to set and go for their goals and to be ambitious like me.

What actor would you want to co-star with?

I am a comedy fan. I love to laugh and I want to be on set with Will Ferrell! A few of his movies I can amost recite. His humor and timing is amazing. Anytime he is in something, you can guarantee that I’m gonna see it. It would be a dream come true to work with him for sure.

Keep up with Phillip’s newest projects on his website: https://mrphillipsteward.com

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Guest Writer – Justin Gantt

Justin Gantt, stage name “Justin Alexander” is an actor/model from New Jersey. Acting has always been a passion for him as he continues to pursue roles in the tri-state area.

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@jchoc_____